On a graphical user interface (GUI), selection of one of the components such as buttons arranged on the screen is the most basic operation. As for the selection of a component, there are a method of directly pointing at the component using a pointing device such as a mouse, and a method of selecting after shifting the focus to a desired component through an input device capable of indicating only the shift direction such as arrow keys or a dial. As for the method using the arrow keys or dial, it is important to carry out the focus shift control appropriately in conformity with the input from the input device.
However, as the number of the components on the GUI increases or the arrangement of the components becomes complicated, the setting of the focus shift control becomes troublesome. Thus, some methods have been proposed for improving efficiency of constructing the GUI including the setting of the focus shift control. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method of improving the efficiency of constructing the GUI by making rules for the number and arrangement of the components and for the order of the focus shift in advance and by generating the GUI automatically from them. In addition, Patent Document 2 discloses a method of shifting a focus by providing the components on the screen with an attribute indicating whether they can accept the focus or not, and by skipping the components that cannot accept the focus. Furthermore, Patent Document 3 is one that tries to provide a GUI which is easy to use by shifting the focus in accordance with the focus shift information contained in an event notice from the outside.